“Its charm and perfection come from what it lacks,” said a tester who took this 38-liter pack out for multi-pitch days in Eldorado Canyon, Colorado, through the winter. “It’s refreshingly simple with no bottle openers, crampon patches, or ice tool loops. Just functional and sturdy.” Credit a design that’s catered specifically to rock climbing.
Svelte, ultralight carabiners tend to slide around in quickdraws, even when the draw is cinched tight with an elastic band or bartacking—this can leave the biner cockeyed and hard to clip. Not so with these Metolius draws, which have a rubber fitting that loops up around the biner and locks it in place (Metolius calls this the JIG).
When waterproof-breathable shells venture below 10 oz., you might have to make sacrifices, like non-adjustable cuffs or hood or limited breathability. Not so with the 6.9-oz. Focus LT: Testers praised this Spartan-butuseful jacket for blocking rain but never getting clammy and called it one of the best three-season hardshells they’d worn.
Patagonia’s own version of water-resistant down ups the ante by boosting loft to an astonishing 1,000-fill. They zap 800-fill down with radio waves until its molecular structure changes, allowing the plumes to accept a silicone DWR treatment without the use of chemical binders.
The Diabolos feel precise but versatile with just enough comfort to keep sport and trad climbers happy all day on long granite routes or pumpy, overhanging limestone. “On Hot Dog (5.11b) in Clear Creek Canyon, I needed to pinpoint tiny nubs, heel-hook, and edge multiple times on each burn, and these were the perfect shoe,” one female tester said.
Charge this device before you leave for the weekend, and you’ll have eight hours of music for the crag or campsite. Link your smartphone via Bluetooth to conjure anything from your playlist. “Surprisingly deep and rich,” said one tester.
We like this 8-oz. shooter for its bomber construction and impeccable image quality. After two weeks in Patagonia, one tester declared it the toughest camera he’d ever used—it survived repeated dings on granite and salt water dunkings.
This one-of-a-kind kneepad features a wraparound design with quick-cinch buckles that makes the pad easy on, easy off. Instead of taking off your shoes or bunching up your pants, you can strap it around almost anything on your leg—no more duct tape, liquid adhesives, or weird shave jobs just to get your kneepad on.
When you find clothing that is comfortable, versatile, stretchy, and flattering, it’s a winner. The Urban Gym Capri has a wide waistband for a slimming effect, but, more important, it keeps the pants in place. “These never slipped down—with a harness or without,” one tester said.
Tagged as “the lightest carabiner set on the market,” these clippers barely tip the scales at 19.5 grams (about 0.7 oz.) per biner—hence the name. That’s about 20 percent lighter than the sveltest micro-biners out there. Put another way, a rack of 10 Edelrid Nineteen G quickdraws with 10cm Dyneema slings weighs less than a pound.
Take the weather resistance of the best softshell and marry it to the breathability of an unlined fleece, and you have the Acto MX. “It’s great for high-output activities in the alpine,” said one tester after climbing the Breithorn outside of Zermatt, Switzerland, on a crisp, bluebird day.
“It’s like wearing armor,” said one tester after a two-week stint in perpetually weather-beaten south Patagonia, during which he rarely took the jacket off. “From climbing to sea kayaking to horseback riding, this jacket is perfect for the cold and wet, and it handles abrasion better than just about any other shell I’ve seen.”
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